“Hard to explain, but it’s the most violent part of the wave where you have the least control. Think of it like a rag doll catapulting through the air. He’s damn lucky he was leashed, but during his spiral he injured his shoulder, broke his right leg, and dislocated his left kneecap. I’m surprised he didn’t amputate a finger with that leash too.”

Quinn felt sick to her stomach. They approached the front porch and sat down on the top step. At first their knees were touching, but the sensation was so unsettling that Quinn moved over a few inches to put some space between them.

“How was he rescued?” she asked.

“That’s the miracle. He still had his board, but with his injuries he couldn’t get to shore. Jaime got word that Pali was missing, and he went to every beach, searching for hours. By the time he found him, Pali was clinging to the board hundreds of feet out.”

Of all the people to find Pali, Quinn had to think it was divine intervention for his dad to be the one.

“To beat all, Jaime can’t swim,” Liam said. “He’s probably the one man in our family who wasn’t obsessed with the ocean growing up. At least that I know of.”

“Then how did he get him in?”

“He had to learn real quickly.”

Quinn felt goose bumps crawl up both arms.

“It’s true,” Liam said. “He saw someone clinging to a board out there and knew in his gut that it was Pali. He said there wasn’t time to call for emergency services. He jumped in and floundered for a minute or two; then his reflexes kicked in, and it was either swim or drown. He made it out there and pulled Pali to the beach.”

“That’s absolutely amazing,” Quinn said. “Where is he now?”

“Jaime?” Liam nodded toward the house. “Inside. Probably trying to pry Alani off the back of his neck, where she’s been hanging like a monkey for the last half hour.”

“How’s Maria taking his sudden return?”

“They aren’t talking about it right now. Pali is their priority. He’s going to be incapacitated for a while.”

Quinn felt ashamed that her next thought was that she’d never get them out of the house now. But it fell to the bottom of her pile of troubles when she remembered that she wanted to tell Liam about Carmen and Helen and the discovery about her identity.

“I’ve got a lot to tell you, but do you think I should go inside and see Pali first?”

“No,” Liam said. “He’s sleeping. Everyone else is about to head out. I don’t know if Jaime is staying or what. Let’s give them some time to talk. Want to go to the beach?”

“That sounds good. Let me just pop in and tell Maggie.”

Chapter Twenty-Four

Chapter Twenty-Four